Proposal
by IrishCelebration
Summary: RWHG. Could be a prequel to Telling Them. Ron's proposal to Hermione. FLUFF warning!


Disclaimer: I don't own these characters!

Ron carefully placed the ring in the black velvet box, making absolutely sure it was secure. _I would be the idiot who loses it and proposes with an empty box_.  
Before closing the box up and putting it in his coat pocket, he examined the ring one more time. In the middle of the silver band there lay a square diamond, offset by two sapphires. It was just her taste: bold, but not overdone.  
He had seen her eyeing it during a Hogsmeade trip. They had been dating for about a year when they had decided to waste a day there. They passed by a jewelry store and she peered in the window. She tried to act uninterested at the display when he brought it up.  
"Sapphires, eh? I figured the Gryffindor in you would go for the garnets."  
She blushed as she realized she had been caught fantasizing which ring he would propose with, if he ever got around to proposing. "I was looking at the pearl necklaces, thank you very much."  
Her red face gave away the lie, and Ron made a mental note of the ring. He knew it would be perfect because sapphires were her birthstone. They left Hogsmeade without another word.  
He went back to buy the ring later that night.  
Now, two months later, he tried to remain calm. He was going to meet her for dinner soon. Both of their careers were taking off, and they tried to spend as much time together as possible. They went out for dinner at least once a week, but always somewhere casual. Ron knew it would be a great time to propose because she wouldn't expect it. If he had decided to book a reservation at a fancy bistro, however, she would get suspicious.  
She got off work at exactly 5:30. It was 5:25. Ron felt anxious waiting for the minutes to tick by, so he decided to apparate a little early.  
The restaurant they had chosen to eat at was an Italian place, the kind that felt homey. It had charm, as Hermione would say. They had been there before, and the food was delicious. It was the perfect place to propose: it was casual enough that Hermione wouldn't expect it, but it was romantic at the same time. He knew women always gushed to each other over how and where proposals happened, and he couldn't picture Hermione gushing about being proposed to at, say, a pub.  
Since he was five minutes early, he went inside and got them a table. It was known to be crowded on weekends, and he wanted to make sure they had a table. The hostess led him to a secluded table near the back. Above it, vines wrapped around a trellis decorum piece, and it felt like he was in his own little vineyard.  
He saw Hermione a minute later. And she did not look happy.  
"Oh, there you are!" She called as she finally spotted him. "Why are we all the way back here?"  
Ron's ears turned red as he cleared his throat. "Uh, it's just busy tonight I guess. Besides, I think it's cozy back here."  
She glanced at the vines, squinting at them. "Cozy."  
He winked at her. "Charm, remember?"  
She sat down and huffed about, putting her coat on the back of her chair and fixing her hair.  
The velvet box suddenly felt like lead in Ron's pocket as he slipped off his own coat. "Bad day at work?"  
Hermione heaved a sigh, knowing he would ask and went straight into venting. "Some people are just so incompetent! I swear, the next time I have to pick up someone else's slack just because they are too stupid to do their job correctly, I'm going to explode."  
Ron picked up his menu, carefully trying to figure out how this proposal would work. She would calm down, he thought, glancing at the appetizers.  
"I am so frustrated I can hardly think straight!" She continued, rubbing her temples. "You would think some people would have some common sense, you know?"  
"Erm, yeah. I'm sorry."  
"Not to mention," she kept going, "I had to deal with all of that while getting constant messages from your sister about her wedding."  
Ron looked up at Hermione, feeling a lump in his throat. Harry had proposed to Ginny a couple weeks prior, and it was an understatement to say that Ginny was excited. She was already looking at venues, caterers, florists, bands, you name it. She also happened to pick Hermione as her maid of honor, and for this, Ginny shared every tidbit of wedding information with her.  
"I mean, how many venues can she possibly be interested in? I told her that if she wanted a summer wedding she should just hold it at the Burrow, like Bill did, but she's so over the top, she wants it on the grounds of Hogwarts. I know your fiancé basically saved that school from Voldemort, but honestly…"  
She continued to rant, her face red with frustration. Ron kept his mouth shut, listening to her speak a million miles an hour.  
They ate their entire meal like this. Ron nodded and put in a word or two, but he didn't get a chance to propose, not that he wanted to when she was so upset. They paid and left and Ron looked back one last time at the restaurant, his vision of proposing there gone.  
As soon as they apparated back to the flat they shared, Hermione immediately headed for the bathroom and slammed the door. Ron took the velvet box out of his coat pocket and put it in the drawer of his bedside table. He fell onto the bed, sighing in defeat. _She should be my fiancée right now,_ he thought. She emerged a couple minutes later and plopped unceremoniously on the bed next to him, producing a book out of nowhere to read.  
Ron scooted towards her, wrapping his arm under her shoulders. "Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?"  
She sighed and looked up at him. "No, I'm just being grumpy."  
He kissed her and wrapped his other arm over her, enveloping her in a hug. "Yes I know," this earned him a snort, "and I want to make you feel better."  
She placed her book on the bed and rolled closer to him. "I don't know. Maybe we should just sleep."  
"Sleep? It's like seven o'clock!"  
She lifted her head. "Are you serious? Merlin, I thought it was later. It's been a long day."  
Ron wiggled his eyebrows at her and squeezed her. "Well, if we don't want to sleep, there's something else I can think of that we can do in bed."  
She laughed into his shoulder and pushed him away.  
He feigned hurt and put a hand to his heart. "Ouch."  
She sighed, this time in resignation. "No, I'm ok. Just overworked. And maybe a little jealous."  
"Jealous? Of what?"  
"Of the wedding. Ginny and Harry's, I mean. I'm happy for them, but I don't know."  
A part of Hermione wished he would say something about the wedding. Didn't he feel like they were ready to be married too? Didn't he want her to be his wife?  
Instead, Ron made a 'hmm'-ing sound, and chewed his lip. "I know exactly what you need."  
"You do?" Hermione asked, her curiosity pricking, "And what's that?"  
"A night of fun. No work, no wedding plans for my sister. Let's go to that dance place in Hogsmeade you always wanted to go to. We can have some champagne, you can try to teach me to dance, and I can look like an oaf. It'll be great."  
Hermione giggled at the thought of Ron dancing. "Well…"  
"Come on, tomorrow is Sunday, and we can sleep the morning away. Let's go."  
She finally nodded and smiled. They got up and changed into nicer clothes, ready to have a real night out.  
As Hermione finished the touches on her hair, Ron grabbed the velvet box, slipping it back into his coat pocket.

They arrived in Hogsmeade a minute later, outside the ritzy bar and dance hall. Hermione always talked about trying it out once, but Ron wasn't a great dancer and didn't want to embarrass himself. They took off their coats and sat at a table. Ron ordered a bottle of champagne for them, and when it arrived, he poured two tall glasses.  
"Goodness, Ronald, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to get me drunk."  
Ron nodded, "Because then you'll think I'm an amazing dancer."  
Hermione snorted and took a sip. The champagne was bubbly and sweet, and before she realized it, she was pouring herself another glass.  
The couple drank the whole bottle, talking and laughing. Finally, Hermione grabbed Ron's hand. "Alright, that's enough," she said, giggling, "time to dance."  
The champagne calmed his nerves about making a fool of himself, so he obliged. He whisked her out onto the floor and wrapped on arm around her waist; his free hand tangled itself in hers.  
Either everyone there was tipsy as well, or Ron and Hermione were dancing fairly well. No one glared at them, or said anything, and they danced for five or six songs before Hermione dragged him off the floor.  
"Oh come on," Ron whined, "I'm getting so good."  
Hermione laughed and pulled him to the table. She left money for the champagne and grabbed her coat. "I noticed, Fred Astaire, but I'm dizzy and need fresh air."  
"Who?" asked Ron, slipping on his own coat.  
She smiled at him and together, they walked along the streets of Hogsmeade.  
Ron breathed a breath of the crisp night air, feeling suddenly sober as he remembered the contents of his coat pocket. He strategically steered her down a specific street, ready as he could ever be.  
Before long, they ended up in front of the jewelry store. It had already closed, but the lights were still on in the window, illuminating every diamond to a shimmering sparkle. She recognized the window from their earlier trip, and again peered in the window. Just like he thought she would.  
His hand reached into his pocket, pulling out the box, but not revealing it.  
She frowned. "Bollocks," she said, the tipsiness letting her speak her mind, "that ring I liked so much is gone."  
"Yeah," Ron said sheepishly, "because I bought it."  
Hermione looked at him, her mouth suddenly going dry. The tipsiness she felt gave way as she replayed what he had said.  
Before she could say anything, she saw a black box, and all of a sudden, Ron was down on one knee.  
"I bought this the day you saw it. I wanted to ask you then, but then Harry proposed to Ginny and I didn't feel right following suit immediately after. I hope that's ok. But you are the most incredible woman I have ever met, and I would be so honored if you would be my wife."  
Hermione didn't process anything besides the ring that was in the window a few weeks ago was now being presented to her. The diamond sparkled and the sapphires accented it perfectly, and she felt as though she was dreaming. Her mouth was hanging open in shock and she couldn't speak.  
He knew he had gotten her. She always had something to say unless she was absolutely taken by surprise. He smiled at her until the silence dragged on. "This is where you respond, love."  
Hermione shook her head and dragged herself out of her frozen state. "Yes, I'll marry you; of course I'll marry you!"  
Ron's smile grew as he slid the ring onto her left ring finger. She admired it for a second before he scooped her up and spun her around in happiness. They kissed passionately and stayed in an embrace for a few minutes.  
"I can't believe I'm engaged!" Hermione said, finally breaking the silence.  
"You are," Ron replied. "Do you want to have the wedding ceremony on the grounds of Hogwarts?"  
She smacked his shoulder playfully and they apparated back to their flat, making love the whole night as soon-to-be husband and wife.

Fin

FLUFF OVERLOAD. Review?


End file.
